New York Rangers at Los Angeles Kings: Pregame News and Notes
NEW YORK RANGERS at LOS ANGELES KINGS
Tuesday, Feb. 2, 10:30 p.m.
Staples Center • Los Angeles, CA
Rangers: 25-24-7 (57 pts.)
Kings: 33-19-3 (69 pts.)
* All information through NHL games on Jan. 31
TOMORROW'S GAME:
The Rangers conclude their three-game Western Conference road trip tomorrow when they will face-off against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center (10:30 p.m.), in their fourth game in three days. The Blueshirts currently rank fourth in the Atlantic Division standings, and eighth in the Eastern Conference, with a record of 25-24-7 (57 pts.). The Rangers enter tomorrow's contest having defeated the Colorado Avalanche, 3-1, on Sunday at the Pepsi Center, to snap a five-game losing streak. The win was the first for New York at Colorado since a 6-3 victory on Dec. 31, 1998. The Kings enter the contest with a 33-19-3 (69 pts.) record, and rank fifth in the Western Conference. Following tomorrow's game, the Rangers will return home to begin a three-game homestand on Thursday, Feb. 4, vs. the Washington Capitals at Madison Square Garden (7:00 p.m.). The homestand will continue on Saturday, Feb. 6, vs. the New Jersey Devils (7:00 p.m.), and will conclude on Wednesday, Feb. 10, vs. the Nashville Predators (7:00 p.m.).
RANGERS PRACTICE SCHEDULE:
Prior to the game, the Blueshirts' morning skate is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. PST at Staples Center.
* Schedule and availability subject to change
BROADCAST INFORMATION:
* TV: MSG Network
10:00 p.m. - Rangers Pre-Game Show with Bill Pidto and Ron Duguay
10:30 p.m. - Rangers @ Kings
Broadcasters: Sam Rosen (Play-By-Play), Joe Micheletti (Analyst), John Giannone (In-Game Reporter)
* Radio: 1050 ESPN Radio
10:00 p.m. - Rangers Pre-Game with Kenny Albert
10:30 p.m. - Rangers @ Kings
Broadcasters: Kenny Albert (Play-By-Play), Dave Maloney (Analyst)
RANGERS vs. KINGS:
* All-Time: The Rangers are 64-42-16-0 all-time against the Kings: 36-18-6-0 at home and 28-24-10-0 on the road.
* 2009-10: This is the second and final meeting between the Rangers and Kings this season, and the first at Staples Center. The Rangers own a 1-0-0 record overall thus far, following a 4-2 win on Oct. 14 at MSG.
* Last Season: New York were 1-0-0 against Los Angeles in 2008-09, having defeated the Kings, 3-2, in overtime on Dec. 17 at Staples Center. The Rangers converted one of two power play attempts for a success rate of 50.0% in the contest.
* The Rangers rank 12th in the NHL on the road with a record of 13-11-3 (29 pts.) in 27 games; the Kings have posted a record of 14-9-2 (30 pts.) in 25 home games to rank 18th in the league
* New York have posted a record of 4-2-0 vs. the Pacific Division; Los Angeles have registered a 3-2-0 mark vs. the Atlantic Division
* Henrik Lundqvist has posted a record of 1-0-0 with a 2.00 goals against average in one appearance vs. Colorado this season; Lundqvist is 1-2-0 with a 3.35 goals against average in three career regular season appearances vs. the Kings
* Defenseman Michal Rozsival led all skaters with two goals in last season's meeting with Los Angeles, including the overtime game-winner, and Captain Chris Drury added two points (one goal and one assist) and a team-high five shots.
* Marian Gaborik leads the team with 17 goals and 27 points in 25 career regular season contests vs. Los Angeles; Chris Drury has tallied a team-high 14 assists in 25 career regular season appearances vs. the Kings
* Hats Off - Marian Gaborik recorded his third career hat trick on Nov. 4, 2002 at Los Angeles
* First Goals - Chris Drury (Oct. 18, 1998) and Enver Lisin (Nov. 4, 2006) each tallied their first NHL goal vs. Los Angeles
* New York lists two former Kings on their roster: Sean Avery (2002-03 - 2006-07); Brian Boyle (2007-08 - 2008-09)
* Los Angeles lists no former Rangers on their roster
RANGERS NOTES:
GABORIK'S BACK-TO-BACK PERFORMANCE - Marian Gaborik kicked off the Rangers current three-game Western Conference road trip with standout performances in this weekend's back-to-back set. In Saturday's 3-2 loss at Phoenix, Gaborik tallied his 30th goal of the season at 9:42 of the third period, marking the sixth time in his nine NHL seasons he has reached the 30-goal plateau. The last time a Ranger accomplished the feat was Jaromir Jagr, who registered 30 goals during the 2006-07 season. In the second game of the back-to-back set, Gaborik notched all three Rangers' goals in a 3-1 win at Colorado to record his first hat trick as a Blueshirt, the 10th of his career and first since posting five goals vs. the Rangers on Dec. 12, 2007, as a member of the Minnesota Wild. It is the first hat trick by a Ranger since Chris Drury notched three goals vs. Tampa Bay on Nov. 6, 2008. Gaborik's first goal at 13:53 of the first period was the 250th of his career, and his 500th career NHL point.
SUCCESS AGAINST THE PACIFIC - New York has posted a record of 4-2-0 vs. Pacific Division opponents so far this season. The Rangers have converted 32.0% (8-25) of their power play attempts in those six games, while surrendering just three goals in 36 shorthanded situations (91.7%).
SCORING IN THE CLUTCH - Forward Brandon Dubinsky leads the Rangers in game winning goals since the start of the 2008-09 season, with 11 of his 24 goals counting as the game-winner over the last two years. This season, the Rangers have posted a record of 7-0-1 in games when he notches a goal.
A BROADWAY HIT - The Blueshirts currently rank second in the NHL with 1,584 hits, including 690 hits on the road to rank third in the league. Ryan Callahan ranks second in the NHL with 205 hits, and Michael Del Zotto ranks third among all first-year players with 122 hits.
THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT - Rookie defenseman Michael Del Zotto currently leads all NHL rookies in power play assists (12), ranks second in power play points (15), fourth in assists (18), tied for fifth in power play goals (three) and ranks sixth in points (24). Artem Anisimov is tied for second on the Rangers overall in even strength goals (eight), and seventh among NHL rookies in goals (nine) and 12th in points (18). Matt Gilroy is currently tied for fourth among rookie defensemen with four goals.
WINS LEADERS SINCE 2006-07 - Since the start of 2006-07, Henrik Lundqvist ranks sixth in the NHL with 134 wins, trailing Miikka Kiprusoff (148) by 14, Martin Brodeur (144) and Roberto Luongo (144) by 10, Evgeni Nabokov (143) by nine, and Ryan Miller (139) by five.
BLUESHIRT OLYMPIANS - The Blueshirts will have five players representing their native country at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, Canada next month. Rangers Captain Chris Drury (3rd Olympic appearance - 2002, 2006) and Ryan Callahan (1st Olympic appearance) will represent the United States, 2006 Winter Olympic Gold Medalist Henrik Lundqvist (2nd Olympic appearance - 2006) will represent Sweden and Marian Gaborik (2nd Olympic appearance - 2006) will represent Slovakia. Hartford Wolf Pack forward Andres Ambuhl (2nd Olympic appearance - 2006), who signed with the Rangers on May 27, will represent Switzerland. In addition, Rangers Head Coach John Tortorella will serve as an assistant coach for Team USA, Head Athletic Trainer Jim Ramsay will serve as an athletic therapist for Team Canada, and Massage Therapist/Assistant Trainer Bruce Lifrieri will serve as the massage therapist for Team USA.
RANGERS STREAKS:
* Marian Gaborik enters tomorrow's contest riding a two-game goal/point streak (four goals)
* Sean Avery enters tomorrow's contest riding a two-game point streak (one goal and one assist)
MILESTONES IN SIGHT:
* Chris Drury: 3 points from 600 NHL career
RECENT MILESTONES ACHIEVED:
* Matt Zaba: 1st career NHL game, Jan. 23 at MTL
* Ryan Callahan: 200th career NHL game, Jan. 25 vs. PIT
* Marian Gaborik: 500th career NHL point/250th career NHL goal, Jan. 31 at COL
INJURIES:
None
Total Man-Games Lost: 51
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
* Jan. 20: Recalled goaltender Matt Zaba from Hartford (AHL), and assigned goaltender Chad Johnson to Hartford
* Jan. 26: Recalled goaltender Chad Johnson from Hartford (AHL), and assigned goaltender Matt Zaba to Hartford
